v READ
GOD’S WORD DAILY:
But his
delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law doth he meditate day and
night. (Psalm 1:2)
God made
your physical body so you must have food daily in order to remain healthy. In a
similar manner, your spirit must be fed daily with the food of the Word of God
if you are to be spiritually healthy:
. . . It
is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word of God. (Luke
4:4)
v READ
SELECTIVELY:
Start by
reading the "milk" of the word. These are the simple truths of the
Word of God:
As
newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word that ye may grow thereby. (1 Peter
2:2)
Eventually
as you stay with it, you will mature spiritually to where you can eat
"meat" of the Word of God. This means you will be able to understand
more difficult teachings of the Bible:
For
everyone that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is
a babe. But strong meat belongeth to
them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses
exercised to discern both good and evil. (Hebrews 5:13-14)
I have
fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it
. . .
(I
Corinthians 3:2)
v READ
PRAYERFULLY:
For Ezra
had prepared his heart to seek the law of the Lord. (Ezra
7:10)
Before
you start to read, pray to God and ask Him to help you understand the message
He has given you through His written Word. Let your prayer be as the Psalmist
David prayed:
Open thou
mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law. (Psalm 119:18)
v READ
SYSTEMATICALLY:
Some
people do not understand God's Word because they do not have a systematic plan
for reading. They read a chapter here and there and fail to understand how it
all fits together. This is like reading a few pages here and there in a text
book on medicine and then trying to set up a medical practice. The Bible tells
us to ". . .search the scriptures" (John 5:39). This means to study
them carefully. The Bible is like a text book used in school. You must read it
in an orderly way if you are to understand its content.
God wants
to bless His people with an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He wants to revive
us and give us spiritual rest, but we could not enter in because we have not
heard His Words. You cannot move on to spiritual meat until we are weaned from
the milk of the Word.
HOW TO
MOVE FROM MILK TO MEAT
How does
a newborn Christian move from the milk to the meat of God's Word?
Ø Desire the
Milk:
First,
you must desire the milk of the Word. You must gain an understanding of the
basic principles of the Word of God:
As
newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby. (1
Peter 2:2)
You
cannot start with spiritual meat. You must first desire and learn to digest
spiritual milk.
Ø Be
Obedient to God's Word:
This is
the most important step. Carnal Christians do not obey what they learn in the
milk God's Word so they are not able to mature on to meat. The Bible teaches
that it is not enough to hear His Word. You must be obedient. You must become a
"doer" of the Word and not a "hearer" only:
But be ye
doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. (James 1:22)
I have
more understanding than all my teachers: for thy testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, because
I keep thy precepts. I have refrained my
feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word. I have not departed from thy judgments: for
thou hast taught me. How sweet are thy
words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through thy precepts I get understanding:
therefore I hate every false way. (Psalm 119:99-104)
Because
David kept God's precepts and was a doer of the Word, his understanding
increased. God will not take you on to the deeper revelations if you have not
acted upon what you have learned in the milk of the Word.
Ø Search for
The Meat:
In the
natural world, chewing meat requires more physical effort than drinking milk.
The same is true in the spiritual world. Discovering the meat of God's Word
requires more spiritual effort than living on the milk of the Word. The bible tells us how to search for the
meat:
My son,
if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou
incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if
thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If you
seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hid treasures: Then shalt thou understand the fear of the
Lord and find the knowledge of God. (Proverbs 2:1-5)
These are
the steps to discovering and understanding the knowledge of God:
® Receive God’s words: We must be
teachable.
® Hide God’s commandments: We must
accept the Word and integrate it into our life and spirit. Do not try to change
the Word to agree with your way of living.
® Incline thine ear unto wisdom:
Really listen to what God is saying through His Word. Listening requires
changes in living where indicated.
® Apply thine heart to
understanding: Apply yourself diligently to understanding (interpreting) the
Word.
® Seek God’s word as silver and
search for it as for hid treasures. When
you make God's Word a priority and begin to systematically search for His
wisdom, you will find it. But it must become a priority of life. You must
approach it with as much excitement and dedication as if you were searching for
treasure.
If you
follow these guidelines and search for the meat of God's Word, these are the
results:
® Then shalt thou understand the
fear of the Lord
® And find the knowledge of God
® Then shalt thou understand
righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea every
good
path
® It will be pleasant unto thy soul:
(You will find satisfaction)
® Discretion shall preserve thee:
Discretion is the ability to make sound judgment and decisions.
® Understanding shall keep thee
® You will be delivered from all
evil
For the
Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous:
he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.
He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his
saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness,
and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.
When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto
thy soul; Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: To
deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward
things; Proverbs 2:6-12
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